Black LA Symposium, 2010 - Welcome and Introduction

The Black Los Angeles Symposium

To accompany the release of the book in the spring of 2010, the Bunche Center hosted a symposium on Black Los Angeles that was held on May 25, 2010 in Royce Hall at UCLA. The event was open to the public. The Center gathered premier scholars, community members, and the staff of elected officials to discuss the current state of Black Los Angeles. The symposium explored issues covered in the volume, such as the relationships between urban processes and race and the interplay between social research and community empowerment. Each of the book's four sections—Space, People, Image, and Action—was discussed at the symposium by a two- or three-person panel and was followed by a Q & A session.

Panelists included Clyde Woods (UCSB), Gerald Horne (U. of Houston), Marcyliena Morgan (Harvard), Vickie Mays (UCLA), Adilifu Nama (CSUN), Erin Aubry Kaplan (journalist), Elaine Brown (author/activist), Danny Bakewell (LA Sentinel), and Mark Sawyer (UCLA). The event was moderated by Professor Kimberly West-Faulcon (Loyola Law Professor). The Center was also presented with two proclamations from elected state officials at the symposium.

Throughout the symposium, the following overarching questions were discussed: How can the history of a place be employed to make sense of the racial present? What lessons can be learned that might help make black dreams of a brighter future a reality in the region and beyond? And what can the case of "Black Los Angeles" teach us about race in America? During this time of so much social, political, and economic change, stakeholders need a forum to discuss these issues. The event produced a lively discussion among all those who attended.

Category:

Education

Tags:

• UCLA
• Black Los Angeles Symposium
• Dr. Darnell M. Hunt
• Dr. Claudia Mitchell-Kernan
• University Of California
• Los Angeles
• Bunche Center